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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24291184">Prelude to an Invitation</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LochNessRaven/pseuds/Mari%20Black'>Mari Black (LochNessRaven)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Torn Asunder [5]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Dragon Age: Inquisition</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Developing Relationship, F/M, Gen, Unresolved Sexual Tension</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 05:36:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,873</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24291184</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LochNessRaven/pseuds/Mari%20Black</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The Iron Bull extends a casual invitation; a conversation with Leliana proves insightful; and the Inquisitor wonders if there's more to Solas than he appears.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Female Lavellan/Solas, Leliana/Female Lavellan, The Iron Bull/Female Lavellan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Torn Asunder [5]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1700971</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Prelude to an Invitation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>The next chapter in the <i>Torn Asunder</i> series, this short piece takes place in the morning after <i>A Delicious Predicament.</i> The story arc is generally chronological, though some pieces will work well as a stand-alone, so this chapter is best read following the <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23629453">previous 4 parts</a>.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Morning, Boss!” The Iron Bull called from across the training yard as Lavellan observed Cullen’s newest batch of volunteers. Her presence there was more of a formality, something to inspire the recently converted and make them believe the Herald of Andraste was keeping a close, personal watch on their progress. While Lavellan had absolutely no expertise in drill instruction, her advisors insisted the occasional “inspection” by the Inquisitor herself would not only boost morale in the ranks but would also encourage good behavior in the green recruits. Cullen himself seemed particularly eager to escort the Herald on her rounds this morning, but within minutes of the tour was called away to deal with other, more pressing matters. Lavellan, left to herself for the moment, waved tiredly at Bull and his lieutenant, Krem, as they paused in their own training drills. Despite sleeping like the undead the night before, Lavellan felt troubled and lethargic this morning.</p>
<p>Knowing she couldn’t escape a conversation now that the men had seen her, Lavellan crossed the courtyard as Bull smashed into Krem with his gargantuan axe. The lieutenant attempted to block the blow with a tower shield, only to end up dazed on the ground with the Qunari looming over him. Bull refused to leave the Chargers to anyone’s direction but his own, insisting on overseeing his motley band’s daily training regimen personally. Still sorting her emotions from the previous evening, Lavellan had been trying to dodge Bull for the day but realized it would be a futile effort while she was encamped in Skyhold. There was only so far you could go to avoid a person in a remote mountain-top fortress.</p>
<p>“You know why you’re dead, <em>again</em>, Krem.” Bull grumbled. “Don’t bother trying to block a frontal attack like that unless you’ve got a shield-wall linked up. That hit was slow – you’ve got mobility on your side. Use it!”</p>
<p>“Hello Krem, Bull,” Lavellan greeted them as she approached, while the lieutenant pulled himself off the ground with a bruised tailbone. “Leliana has bought us a few days respite before we’re due back on the road – why don’t you use the time and give the Chargers a day off?”</p>
<p>Bull shrugged his impressive shoulders, hunching under the weight of his battle axe as he slung the monstrosity across his back. “This <em>is </em>their day off. I’m just making sure they don’t use it to get in trouble with Cullen’s new pets. Those recruits are so green they’re just itching for a brawl to prove themselves in,” he observed.</p>
<p>“You think the Chargers will cause any trouble?” she asked.</p>
<p>“Nah, my troupe knows how to play well with others,” Bull said, amused. “But those hot-blood converts from Fereldan are another matter. And my guys would wipe the fucking floor with them if they got too ornery. You had any breakfast yet?” the Qunari asked, glancing down at the elf woman with a critical eye. Lavellan swore sometimes he gauged her weight by sight alone and acted like a mothering hen if she wasn’t eating enough.</p>
<p>Ruefully, she shook her head. While there were plenty of leftovers from her little private feast, in truth the Inquisitor had overslept and rushed out of her quarters without feeling much like eating.</p>
<p>Bull gestured her over to a stack of crates that were piled behind the Herald’s Rest, set back from where the Chargers were practicing their blocking techniques. He grabbed a handful of bright fruits and handed one to Lavellan. She turned it over in curiosity: it looked like a tomato, but had a waxy, orange skin. She tentatively bit into one and moaned in pleasure as the thick skin broke under her teeth to reveal piquant, firm flesh beneath.</p>
<p>“Heh, I know, right? Persimmons. We “intercepted” a shipment of them a short while ago.”</p>
<p>“Intercepted?” Lavellan choked slightly, laughing. “Should I be worried? Will I receive an angry letter from an Orlesian noble who’s miffed he didn’t get his deserts in time for some ridiculous banquet?”</p>
<p>“Probably. Well – Josephine will. And don’t worry,” he winked with is one good eye, flashing the rakish half-grin that made Lavellan squirm a bit inside, “the ambassador knows how to deal with ornery upstarts who’ve got too much spunk for their own good, too.</p>
<p>“We rescued this batch while on its way to someone who wouldn’t appreciate them, and they’ve just ripened up too. You see, persimmons are complicated fruits. They’re fairly unassuming on the outside, but peel away the tough layer,” he demonstrated with a sharp knife, slicing one of the fruits deftly in half with a small knife, “and you get something unexpectedly sweet inside.”</p>
<p>As if proving a point, Bull bit deeply into the fruit. Thick juice splattered slightly as he slurped the delicacy with relish. Lavellan watched, like a halla caught in a lamplight, as the tall Quinary sighed in pleasure, licking his lips lasciviously. He brought the fruit back up to his mouth, sucking on its ambrosia with delight. While she stared incredulously, Bull finished the treat with two more large bites, licking the sparkling juices that ran down his hand, dragging his wet tongue up the side of his thumb before wrapping his dark lips around the tip of his fingers and popping them out of his mouth with a satisfied smack.</p>
<p>“Hmmmm ... delicious.” He remarked, winking again at the dumbfounded Inquisitor as she stared, too shocked and too horny to respond. As he turned his muscular back to her and sauntered away, Lavellan finally remembered to start breathing again.</p>
<p>“Whaddaya say to meeting up later for drinks, yeah? Once you’re done being all Inquisitive for the day. Come find me; you know where I’ll be. Nice talking with ya, Boss.”</p>
<p><em>Oh, damn him,</em> she thought to herself, watching his quietly triumphant exit. There was no way he didn’t know how good he looked from the back side. Caught up in her appreciation of the Qunari’s shirtless back, now flexing shamelessly as he danced his pectoral muscles at Krem (to the lieutenant’s mortification), Lavellan didn’t hear the spymaster walking up behind her until Leliana’s voice made her jump half out of her skin.</p>
<p>“Inquisitor! How are you feeling today? I hope you had pleasant and relaxing evening.”</p>
<p>“Leliana, you startled me! Yes – I’ve been meaning to find you, thank you so much for the bath, and the amazing soap. I don’t believe I’ve felt this clean in my entire life.”</p>
<p>“I am glad it was to your liking. We Orlesians are very fond of a good bath, and we take pride in the delicate touches that make the experience all the more enjoyable. There is actually a hot mineral spring not far from Skyhold – I wonder if the original owner knew this, and took advantage of the proximity?</p>
<p>“Regardless, if you would like to participate in a true Orlesian spa experience, I would be happy to take you there. Beyond the necessity of hygiene, it becomes a ritual of a sorts: it helps wash us of more than just the dust from the road, it lets us leave behind some of the worries we carry along with us. I know the Dalish have their own rituals and customs, but I’d hoped it would do the same, for you as well.”</p>
<p>“Oh, yes, very much so,” Lavellan lied, not wanting to seem ungracious for what was, sincerely, a lovely experience. “Did Dorian actually remember that fragrance was my favorite? He teased me all the way back from Val Royeaux the last time we visited, but I didn’t think he’d give it another thought after that.”</p>
<p>Leliana frowned slightly, cocking her head. “Dorian? Oh, you mean the Orlesian soap? No, Dorian hadn’t said anything to me about it; it was Solas who suggested that item as a gift. He remarked on how much you loved the shop but would not spend the coin for it on yourself. I was happy to call in a favor from a friend in Val Royeaux to have a few bars shipped in. Was it not what you liked?”</p>
<p>“Oh no,” Lavellan exclaimed, smiling to put her friend at ease, “It was exactly the one I loved! It was perfect. Thank you so much for the treat, I’ll try to pay you back for it somehow.”</p>
<p>“Do not trouble yourself, Inquisitor. You of all people more than deserve something special for yourself, once in a while. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I really must return to my duties.”</p>
<p>Lavellan nodded in acknowledgement, her mind already turning to the rotunda and the quiet elf who studied there. <em>Solas …?</em> She pondered, puzzling over the mage and his inexplicable behaviors. She had been drawn to him, naturally, when they first met – he was knowledgeable, confident, reclusive, and reserved in a way she rarely experienced with one of the People. She was attracted to his wit and the way his body moved when he performed magic, like a dancer coiling and springing effortlessly. And she had to admit, thrust headlong into an army of <em>shemlen</em>, she found herself desiring the company of another elf mage like herself.</p>
<p>But his acerbic opinions of the Dalish conflicted so dramatically with his strange compliments that Lavellan couldn’t decide if he was cruelly making fun of her or trying to flirt with her. His tongue was so sharp and sardonic towards the others in her party, she’d finally assumed the former … until that horrible evening when Haven burned. He was intense, fierce, protective – Solas fought tirelessly at her side to save as many of the refugees as they could, even when he believed the humans would blame the elves for the devastation wrought by Corypheus’ Orb. She felt a connection with him, in the aftermath, and again on the long journey to Skyhold.</p>
<p>Then, in the Fade, they had kissed. So impulsively, heedless of anything beyond that single, stinging moment.</p>
<p>Yet in the weeks following, the elven mage withdrew from her again, remaining aloof and disinterested. Lavellan resolved to put that all behind her, chocking it up to emotions heightened by the Fade, and her own desire for physical comfort. Solas gave no indication he thought of her at all and seemed content to go about his own studies. The fact that the apostate had been so unknowingly observant made the Inquisitor consider him in a new light.</p>
<p>She resolved that, as soon as she had space to think, she would go and speak with Solas in private. Right now, she had more sexual tension to contend with than she would like.</p>
<p>Lavellan watched as the Iron Bull hefted a squealing serving girl with a single curl of a bulging bicep, as Krem hastily rescued a tray of refreshments she had been passing out to the Chargers in front of the Herald’s Rest. <em>You idiot,</em> she shook herself unsympathetically. <em>You’ve got more important things to worry about right now. The entire world is exploding, and all you can think about is sex.</em></p>
<p>She turned, casting one last look at the laughing crowd, cheering raucously over The Bull’s antics, and sighed. She promised herself she wouldn’t do anything stupid later that evening.</p>
<p>Just a simple drink between friends. There was absolutely nothing sexy about that.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Aneth ara!<br/>I've finally wrapped up <i>A Delicious Predicament</i>, and I'd love to hear what you think! This piece was originally part of Part 4, but I decided it worked better as it's own chapter and will segue better into the following stories. The next chapter will be quite sexy, so I hope you enjoy the slow-burn pace and will continue to read as Lavellan's character grows (and her sex life blossoms!).<br/>Dareth shiral, and enjoy the journey!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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